On Thursday in San Jose, Vancouver Whitecaps FC centre back Kendall Waston will take on English Premier League club Arsenal FC in the 2016 MLS All-Star Game (4:30 p.m. PT on TSN). You already know the MLS All-Star roster, and this past weekend Arsenal unveiled their 23-man preliminary squad. The roster, which remains subject to change, can be seen below.
Goalkeepers (3): Petr Cech, David Ospina, Emiliano Martinez
Defenders (7): Hector Bellerin, Krystian Bielik, Calum Chambers, Mathieu Debuchy, Kieran Gibbs, Rob Holding, Nacho Monreal
Midfielders (9): Santi Cazorla, Francis Coquelin, Mohamed Elneny, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jeff Reine-Adelaide, Chris Willock, Jack Wilshere, Granit Xhaka, Gedion Zelalem
Forwards (4): Chuba Akpom, Joel Campbell, Alex Iwobi, Theo Walcott
Arsenal’s preliminary roster includes heavy hitters like Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and David Ospina as well as the likes of Petr Cech, Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshire, and Joel Campbell, an international teammate of Waston’s with Costa Rica.
There are, however, some omissions.
“The players who won’t make it are the players who went very far in the European Championship, such as [Aaron] Ramsey, Ozil, [Olivier] Giroud and [Lauren] Koscielny,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger told Arsenal.com news editor Rob Kelly. “I left Gabriel behind today because he has tonsillitis and is infected. He cannot travel. [And] Alexis will not go either because he had an ankle injury, and I will leave him behind as well.”
The club also announced on Monday that defender Per Mertesacker (knee) did not travel.
Be a part of the best sporting atmosphere in Vancouver! Whitecaps FC offer a flexible range of ticket products, including Half-Season Packs, 5-Packs, a Youth Soccer Half-Season Ticket, and single match tickets. For more information, visit whitecapsfc.com/tickets.
